It wasn't until Xu Liang and Zhou Ping came in that Zhao Hong withdrew his gaze.
"Xue Ji and Xuan Zhen, the two ruling ministers, do they have something to hide?"
Zhao Hong was thoughtful and asked about Xu Liang and his two men, whose faces were red from the cold. He cut open the pomegranate with a knife, broke it into several pieces, picked up one piece and ate it slowly.
One is the prime minister of the current dynasty, and the other is the privy envoy of the current dynasty, which can make them panic. The reason behind this is thought-provoking.
Xu Liang took a few pieces of pomegranate from Dong Songchen on a plate, but did not dare to eat them. He put them on the table aside and sat down respectfully with Zhou Ping.
"Your Majesty, there have been a lot of rumors in the government and the public in recent days, saying that our Song Dynasty court is in chaos, and there are treacherous ministers who have misled the country, deceived Sheng Cong, and asked the Qing emperor to sideline and rectify the country. In my opinion, Prime Minister Xue and Prime Minister Xuan must be because of this matter And worried.”
Zhou Ping and Xu Liang looked at each other, and it was Zhou Ping who spoke.
"It's such a big fuss? Why didn't I know?"
Zhao Hong held back his shock. He didn't even know about such a big thing.
On the side of Qingjun, Zhengguoshuo!
No wonder Xue Ji and Xuan Ming were in panic.
"Your Majesty, this has been discovered in recent days, and has been published in tabloids and widely publicized by storytellers. In addition to private meetings and series of communications, some ministers also frequently come in and out of the Imperial Academy to preach about His Majesty's new policies and the shortcomings of using foreign troops. This matter There has been an uproar and everyone in Lin'an City knows about it."
Zhou Ping replied in a low voice, cautiously.
The evil winds in the government and the public are blowing, and rumors and rumors are accumulated and destroyed. He is in charge of the Intelligence Department, so of course he has heard about it and has many details.
"Do you know who the ministers are?"
Zhao Hong frowned and asked softly.
Since the emergence of local newspapers such as "China Daily" and Chen Qi's "Lin'an News", he has rarely read these tabloids, which have a huge amount of information, are both good and evil, and are as influential as regular newspapers.
Xue Ji and Xuan Zhen had many concerns. It turned out that they were regarded as traitors by people with ulterior motives, and they were afraid that they would be helpless and regard them as scapegoats.
What do they think of themselves, villains who burn bridges by crossing rivers?
Zhao Hong frowned and snorted coldly.
"Your Majesty, there are Chen Duanchang, the censor Zhongcheng, Ge Hong, the minister of the Ministry of punishment, Wu Jing, the Yin of Lin'an Prefecture, Liu Bi, the minister of household affairs, Tang Lin, the censor, and others. These people are colluding to resist the implementation of the Jingjie Law and oppose the abolition of official and prostitute status. He slanders and slanders women about going to school and other matters, and even speaks nonsense about Your Majesty sending troops to rescue Xixia. His heart is to be punished."
Xu Liang opened his mouth and handed over several tabloids.
Lin'an Prefecture Yin Wu Jing? Yushi Zhongcheng Chen Duanchang?
Zhao Hong smiled coldly and took the tabloid.
Lin'an Governor Wu Jing, his former supporter, although he did not support the New Deal, how could he do such a thing behind his back?
There is also Chen Duanchang, the censor Zhongcheng, who has an excellent reputation. The last time he was asked to go back and reflect, he did not expect that after his return, this man turned out to be a general of the Zhuhe faction.
Gaining a good reputation with direct advice can indeed be punished.
If you have the time, why don't you support the New Deal more, check for leaks and fill them, and do good things for the people in a down-to-earth manner?
Zhao Hong looked at it for a moment, his face turned livid in anger, and the tabloid slapped the table hard, making the cups jump.
"That's nonsense! It doesn't make sense!"
When women go to school, they are said to live in the same room with men; when they implement the law of karma, they are said to be competing with the people; when they are not official prostitutes, they are said to cause official prostitutes to lose their jobs; when foot binding is banned, it is said to be illegal. It is offensive to moral standards; building water conservancy projects and building roads and bridges has also become a misuse of people's power...
Also, his layout in the northwest frontier fortress was said to be militaristic and instigated by treacherous ministers. Even Princess Li Weiming of Naxixia was addicted to wine and sex and did not care about state affairs.
"Those scholar-bureaucrats, what disadvantages did they preach about the New Deal? Did they resist the New Deal?"
Zhao Hong's heart immediately hardened.
The New Deal benefits the country and the people, which is his bottom line. No matter who dares to undermine the New Deal, he will show no mercy.
"The abolition of favors to enter officialdom, women's enrollment in school, women's foot binding, suppression of culture and promotion of military affairs, abolition of official prostitutes and low status, execution of scholar-bureaucrats, etc. are all their excuses for opposing the New Deal. Your Majesty does not know that today's wealthy families in Lin'an City, and Many women had their feet bound and kept it secret. Many officials also kept prostitutes in private and were lazy and lazy in their administration. The people were filled with resentment."
Zhou Ping spoke softly but spoke incessantly. Zhao Hong's face was as dark as water and his mood was extremely bad.
There are too few officials, corrupt officials and mediocre officials. This has been the case from ancient times to the present.
"Zhen Dexiu, my teacher, he wasn't involved, was he?"
Zhao Hong was disappointed, but he didn't want his teacher Zhen Dexiu to be involved.
Will the officials from the Intelligence Department find out anything?
"Your Majesty, except for going to court recently, Mr. Truth has closed his doors to thank guests, written books, and never seen any outsiders."
Xu Liang played in a low voice, and Zhao Hong secretly exhaled and shook his head secretly.
As the emperor's master and still in power, if Zhen Dexiu was also involved, the situation would be even more complicated.
"Your Majesty, the majority of officials are opposed to the New Deal. The root cause is that their own interests are harmed. Your Majesty does not need to care too much. Your Majesty wants to use troops in the northwest, and those ministers who block the way must be on guard. If necessary, I can help your Majesty. Share the worries.”
Zhou Ping said softly, Xu Liang was secretly frightened, and Zhao Hong was noncommittal.
The scholar-bureaucrats opposed him sending troops. First, they were afraid of soldiers and were cowardly in their bones. The second reason is selfishness. There is no benefit in winning, but there may be losses in losing.
Opposing the New Deal and sending troops are ultimately for the benefit of people like ourselves. How many officials are there who truly serve the country and the people?
"If I don't lead troops to go on an expedition, won't the people in the northwest border be in ruins and let the Mongolian army torture them? I, the emperor of the Song Dynasty, will also be scolded. I cannot afford this eternal infamy!"
Zhao Hong said angrily and turned to Zhou Ping and Xu Liang.
"Insufficient success means more failure than failure. These die-hard officials are extremely powerful and have a lot of sticks to stir things up. Xue Ji and Xuan Zhen are alone. Do you two have a more appropriate solution?"
Qingliu such as Zhen Dexiu, Zou Yinglong and Xu Xuan must have known about these things, but no one told him, which really frightened and chilled him.
If it weren't for the spies from the Intelligence Department, he would still be kept in the dark and not know how to plan in advance.
"Your Majesty, the only plan now is to postpone the dispatch of troops until I can find out more of these Qingliu's sore feet. Your Majesty will investigate and deal with them in accordance with the law and draw fire from the bottom of the cauldron. In this way, the obstruction of sending troops will naturally be resolved."
Zhao Hong didn't seem to want to use extreme solutions, so Zhou Ping had no choice but to settle for the next best thing.
"Your Majesty, if necessary, you can depose Xue Ji and Xuan Zhen first, so that the Qingliu people will have nothing to say and will no longer hinder your Majesty from sending troops. When the time is right, Xue Xuan and Xue Xuan will be reactivated."
Xu Liang then spoke, which seemed to be an expedient and more tactful approach.
Stubborn officials fail to accomplish enough and fail more than they should. The words "emperor" are really just right when applied to these officials.
"Sacrificing Xue Ji and Xuan Zhen will hinder the dispatch of troops even more. Who do they think they are, that they can restrict me at will?"
Zhao Hong smiled coldly. He thought for a moment and then raised his head.
"It is better to draw fuel from the bottom of the cauldron than to stop it from boiling. You two have done a good job! I will check it carefully after you go down. I won't believe it. Their butts are all clean! Especially Wu Jing and Chen Duanchang, both important officials of the imperial court. Don't alert the enemy, and quickly make a solid case."
Even if the dispatch of troops is postponed, it cannot be delayed past next spring.
Xu Liang and Zhou Ping understood and bowed in agreement.
After a rigorous investigation, it is estimated that some ministers will be removed from officialdom soon.
"Quick, eat some pomegranate! Don't waste it! Only when you are full can you do things!"
Zhao Hong said, waving his hands gently, and the imperial army came up with a lot of rewards.
"This is my wish. Those who have merit will be rewarded, and those who are mediocre will not get any money. Today is New Year's Eve, so everyone should go back and spend time with their families."
Zhou Ping and Xu Liang each took a piece of pomegranate, thanked each other, and quickly retreated.
The emperor is telling them to work hard when they are full, and never tolerate adultery.
In the imperial study, a gust of wind blew and the fire flickered. Zhao Hong quickly covered the candle with his hand. Dong Songchen hurried over and immediately closed the window.
"Leave a small gap!"
Zhao Hong did not forget to give a warning.
This is the disadvantage of the briquette stove. Although it is convenient, it is prone to carbon monoxide poisoning.
I don’t know if electricity could be invented and applied to the world in our own time.
Looking away from the gradually dimming sky outside the window, Zhao Hong nodded slightly.
"Call them in."
Except for Cui Yu, who is older and Sichuan is too far away from Lin'an City, the other close ministers include Wang Gang, the envoy of Jiangnan East Road, Hu Mengyu, the envoy of Jiangnan West Road, and Gao Dingzi, the envoy of Liangzhe Road. Du Fan, the first prefect of Liuqiu, came to Lin'an City to prepare for the New Year's Day meeting tomorrow.
Of course, at the end of the year, they also have to report their work to the emperor and report the gains and losses of the New Deal. This is also their duty.
